Lutz News-Lutz/Odessa-July 26, 2017

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Cleanup to begin on massive sinkhole

By Kevin Weiss

kweiss@lakerlutznews.com

Barring unforeseen developments, cleanup is expected to begin this week on the massive sinkhole that recently swallowed two homes in the Lake Padgett community of Land O’ Lakes. As of July 20, Pasco County was entering the final stages of securing bids from contractors for debris removal at the sinkhole site, which now measures 235 feet wide and approximately 50 feet deep — believed to be the largest in the county’s history. Before cleanup and repair work can begin, however, engineers must perform additional testing to ensure the ground around the sinkhole is stable enough for heavy equipment. One of the county’s contracted engineers, Intertek-PSI, is currently using ground penetrating radar and core sampling to measure the structural integrity of Ocean Pines Drive and county easements leading up to the sinkhole. Kevin Guthrie, Pasco County’s assistant county administrator for public safety, said recovery work could take months, with

Test your water

Due to the positive bacterial results, Pasco County announced it is waiving the fees for well water for testing more than 400 homes along Lake Padgett and Lake Saxon through July 28. All residents living on the following streets qualify for free well water testing: Bronze Leaf Place, Canal Place, Clover Leaf Lane, Flat Rock Place, Grove Place, Heatherwood Lane, Lake Padgett Drive, Lake Saxon Drive, Ocean Pines Drive, Panther Way, Peninsular Drive, Pine Shadow Drive, Rain Forest Place, Snook Circle, Swans Landing Drive and Wilsky Road.

costs ranging from $750,000 to more than $2 million. “It’s going to be a very slow and methodical process,” Guthrie said. The county already has spent about $100,000 responding to the sinkhole, through contractual and departmental costs. The county’s goal is to have a debris removal company in place in case homeowner’s insurance companies don’t

Residents who would like their well water tested should do the following: • Go to the Pasco County Environmental Laboratory located at 8864 Government Drive in New Port Richey and request a test kit for Total Coliform. • Present proof of address and receive lab instructions to collect water. • Take a sample of their tap water according to lab protocols, and bring the sample and associated paperwork back to the laboratory. • Results will be available in two days.

accept responsibility to clean up the sinkhole. The fastest, most economical cleanup tactic being considered is what’s called a dragline — a cable-operated system that would extend out and collect debris from the surface of the sinkhole. Other possible options include using a See SINKHOLE, page 15A

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FRED BELLET

Eugene Vrooman, left, explains differences in the type of gauge size trains running on the tracks at the Lutz Branch Library.

lakerlutznews.com Service the Way

it Oughta Be!

The Lutz Depot, by design By B.C. Manion

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Those wishing to escape the oppressive heat during the Fourth of July festivities in Lutz may have decided to check out a train show inside the Lutz Branch Library. If I they did, they could have seen an exhibit presented by the Suncoast American Flyer Enthusiasts. And, perhaps they would have had a chance to chat with Eugene Vrooman, one of the club’s members. See DEPOT, page 15A

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Eugene Vrooman, a draftsman by trade, drew the drawings for this building, which was erected in 2000. He based the dimensions on a photo that was published in ‘Citrus, Sawmills, Critters & Crackers,’ by Elizabeth Riegler MacManus and Susan A. MacManus.

Computer club navigates programming basics By Kevin Weiss

kweiss@lakerlutznews.com

Roshan Kumaraswamy started programming computers in middle school — now he’s teaching the craft to others. Last month, the 16-year-old Land O’ Lakes High School senior created Coding Club, for tweens and teens aspiring to learn more about computer sciences. The club began meeting on Fridays in July, at the Land O’ Lakes Branch Library. It accommodates up to 10 people, who program on library-issued Dell laptops. The club, which now has a wait list, doesn’t require any prior programming experience. “It’s pretty much adapted to anybody,” Kumaraswamy said. “I have a couple students that are pretty advanced, and then some that don’t even know how to make a file.” During weekly, two-hour sessions, Kumaraswamy teaches the basics of website programming, from HTML (HyperText Markup Language) and CSS (Cascading Style

Sheets), to Swift — each of which serves various functions. For instance, HTML is the very core structure of a website, while CSS is used to stylistically improve websites. Swift is a general-purpose programming language often used for Apple products. Club members already have learned to build simple websites and develop two-dimensional arcade video games, like Pong — a popular table tennis sports game. In subsequent classes, Kumaraswamy plans to introduce the Java programming language, and teach corresponding application concepts. Java serves multiple purposes, from programming Android apps and games, to performing complex mathematical operations. “There’s not really any limitation as to what you can do with coding,” he said. “I think it’s really cool that you can just take a lot of text words and create something with it, and sort of just experiment around.” Kumaraswamy began coding in the sev-

See COMPUTER, page 15A

KEVIN WEISS

Roshan Kumaraswamy, a 16-year-old senior at Land O’ Lakes High School, first learned computer programming in middle school. He recently created a computer programming club at the Land O’ Lakes Branch Library, called Coding Club. It’s designed for teens and tweens who are interested in learning more about computer sciences.


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